Welcome Gail Z. Martin today

One of my favorite fantasy authors introduces readers to a new fantasy series in Assassin's Honor. Get ready for fun and adventure, mystery and magic in this new book. Check out the tour stops found HERE and make sure to enter the giveaway at the end of the post for a chance to win from the author a $25 Amazon gift card to one lucky person. The more you comment, the better your chance at winning.

Now let's chat with Gail on her writing and other fun stuff:

Thanks for stopping by to talk a little about your writing! Let's jump right in.

Q: Do you have a favorite genre? Is it the same genre you prefer to write?

A: I love any genre that includes magic and ghosts, or something supernatural! So I bring that to all of the genres in which I tell stories.

Q: Do certain themes and ideas tend to capture your writer’s imagination and fascinate you?

A: I’ve always had a weak spot for anything with magic, the supernatural, folklore, myths and legends, etc. I have read a lot on those topics over the years, and I like those elements in the stories I enjoy as a reader. So it only makes sense that I’m going to carry them into the stories I write.

Q: How do you balance long-term thinking vs. being nimble in today's market?

A: I write in a lot of different genres, and I’m always open to consider a collaboration, shared universe, anthology, or cross promotion with other authors. I don’t think it works to chase the market, writing stories for what’s hot in the moment. Write what you love, do the very best you can, and the readers who are perfect for you will find you.

Q: How do you find readers in today's market?

A: Online, I’m active on Facebook and Twitter. I participate in multi-author contests and giveaways and sites like Instafreebie/Prolific Works. I go to conventions and am on panels talking about genre and fandom issues. I go to comic cons and pop culture cons and renaissance festivals and run a booth or a table. I do a lot of blog tours, send advance review copies (ARCs) to reviewers and bloggers, and am always open to being interviewed for a blog or a podcast. I enjoy meeting people!

Q: Do you come up with the hook first, or do you create characters first and then dig through until you find a hook?

A: It varies by series and what came to mind first. I’ve done it both ways. Sometimes I’ll get the setting or the plot really clearly, and have to create the right characters for that story. In other cases, I’ll get the characters first, and have to figure out what their story is. It keeps me on my toes!

Q: How do you create your characters?

A: I sit down and think about what they look like, what they like or dislike, how they look, etc. And if I get stuck, I ask them!

Q: What's on the top of your TBR pile right now?

A: I’m glad I have a Kindle, because I’ve got a lot of books queued up for the holidays! I need to get caught up on John Hartness’s Quincey Harker, Demon Hunter series, and some action/adventure novels by Shayne Silvers and Joe Nassise.

Q: Tell me a little about the characters in Assassin’s Honor.

A: Joel Breckenridge (Ridge) and Garrett Kennard (Rett) met as children in an orphanage and became best friends. They joined the army together, and were chosen to be King’s Shadows—members of an elite team of assassins who eliminate bad guys who haven’t been caught by conventional methods. They have a secret—Rett has a touch of forbidden magic. Along with their long suffering valet, Henri, Ridge and Rett do their best to protect the kingdom, even if it means breaking some rules along the way.

Q: Where’s the story set? How much influence did the setting have on the atmosphere/characters/development of the story?

A: The series is set in the fictional kingdom of Landria. It’s a medieval time period, and a monarchy, a fairly prosperous kingdom that nonetheless has some trouble brewing beneath the surface.

Q: If you had to write your memoir in five words, what would you write?

A: Been there, done that. Done!

Q: How often does your muse distract you from day to day minutiae?

A: I’m well known in my house for daydreaming on road trips and when I’m shopping or doing anything that doesn’t take a lot of concentration.

Q: What do readers have to look forward to in the future from you?

A: There will be more books in the Assassins of Landria series! Assassin’s Honor is also now available in audiobook! There will be new books out in all of my series next year, if plans work out, and some new series as well, so expect some surprises!

GENRE: Epic Fantasy

Available at Amazon

Buddy flick epic fantasy! Joel Breckenridge and Garrett Kennard are King's Shadows, elite assassins serving the crown of Landria. When a shadowy itinerant holy man starts captivates the nobility with treasonous whispers, Ridge and Rett go rogue to stop the threat, save the kingdom and protect the king--while landing on the 'Most Wanted' list themselves.

Excerpt:

He rolled the warrant up and tucked it into Destwiler’s bloody vest, a formality. Ridge bent down to search Destwiler’s pockets, curling his lip at the still-warm blood that soaked the shoulders and sleeves of the man’s coat. He found a parchment note tucked beneath the vest and took it to read later, figuring that anything Destwiler found important enough to carry on his person bore looking at closely.

“Are you stealing from him?” Kelvin asked, still eying Ridge with a mixture of fear and awe.

Ridge replied without looking up. “I’m trying to find the keys to those manacles, because I sure as hell don’t want to have to carry you and them out of here, and we need to leave.” He took the iron key off the strap and then stood and crossed the distance to where Kelvin huddled against the wall.

He stared at Ridge in wide-eyed apprehension, unsure what to make of his terrifying rescuer. His wrists were badly bruised from the weight of the iron, and the mark on his cheek suggested Destwiler or his guard had backhanded the child at least once.

“I’m here to take you back to your father,” Ridge said quietly, approaching Kelvin as he would a spooked horse. “I’m not going to hurt you.”

“Are you a Shadow Killer?” Kelvin’s tone shifted, still frightened but clearly intrigued. Ridge had always hated that term—he argued that it made it sound like they killed shadows.

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Gail Z. Martin writes epic fantasy, urban fantasy and steampunk for Solaris Books, Orbit Books, Falstaff Books, SOL Publishing and Darkwind Press. Vengeance is the second in the new Darkhurst epic fantasy series. Also new is The Dark Road, the second in the Jonmarc Vahanian Adventures series, and Assassin’s Honor (coming, October 2018), the first in the new Assassins of Landria series.

Her Deadly Curiosities urban fantasy series set in Charleston, SC has a new novel, Tangled Web, and two new collections, Trifles & Folly, and Trifles & Folly 2.

Other work includes the Chronicles Of The Necromancer series, the Fallen Kings Cycle, the Ascendant Kingdoms series, and the alternate history novel Iron & Blood and the Storm & Fury collection (co-authored with Larry N. Martin) She is also the co-author (with Larry) of the Mark Wojcik monster hunter series (Spells, Salt and Steel) and the upcoming Wasteland Marshals series and the Cauldron/Secret Council series from Falstaff Books.

As Morgan Brice, she writes urban fantasy MM paranormal romance. New and upcoming books include Witchbane, Burn, Dark Rivers, Badlands, and Lucky Town.

Find her at www.GailZMartin.com, on Twitter @GailZMartin, on Facebook.com/WinterKingdoms, at DisquietingVisions.com blog and on Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/GailZMartin. She is also the organizer of the #HoldOnToTheLight campaign www.HoldOnToTheLight.com. Join her email update and never miss a new release—plus get great free stories just for signing up! http://eepurl.com/dd5XLj

Buy on Audio, ebook, paperback or free on Kindle Unlimited here: http://a.co/d/aLiSoFi

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